Caring for your aging parents while working can take a toll on anyone’s financial and emotional resources. Especially if you are also juggling your workload from home, whether that is working online as an accountant, teaching, or researching how to start a senior care franchise of your own, as well as caring for the household, and taking care of your kids. Doing all of this on your own is a lot. And if you are not careful, you can burn out quickly.
We know it’s not easy trying to juggle life and taking care of an elderly parent, especially if they suffer from an illness. With the current situation in the world, and with new strings of the virus coming up every day, it can also be scary. Especially for elderly parents because we all know they are amongst the people who are more at risk of getting sick. In this guide today, we give you a few tips that can help you take care of your senior parents while working from home.
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Ensure you find time to connect with your parents before you start working
Your senior parents are probably just as stressed as you are. Even if they are not watching the news, they can also pick up on your moods of other people around them. If they feel they are a burden to you in any way, it can create a feeling of anxiety and loneliness where they may not be communicating their needs.
Ensure you find time to connect with your parents every day. Try to create a calm and happy atmosphere for them around the house so that you also have time to get some work done.
If your aging parents are not aware of what is going on in the news, you can also explain it to them in simple terms. Try to connect with them every morning before you start working. If you have other family members who live far, you can also set up zoom calls and video calls for them to connect with other family members and even friends. This creates a sense of connection for them and lowers the risk of falling into depression because of stress, anxiety, or loneliness.
Create a routine
Routines are also essential when caring for your aging parents. They can also be beneficial for helping to get some work done from home. The same way you have set up a routine for your kids when studying from home, is the same way you should schedule one for your parents. Those in private home care, such as https://vivanteliving.com/senior-living/newport-beach/ have this. So it is recommended to create routine in your home as well.
If your senior parents know when to expect to do something like getting dressed, eating meals, taking their medicine, and engaging in activities like exercising, walking, or enjoying their favorite shows, they will be less likely to be bored or disrupt your working hours.
Their Routine and Needs
Remember to try as much as possible not to disrupt your parent’s routine as well. If it is their time to exercise, connect with friends or family on a call, or watch their favorite show, give them their time and ensure you have connected all the gadgets they need. For example, if they will be on a call, is the internet-connected? Have you signed them into the call and with volume adjusted just right? Do they have snacks and something to drink if they enjoy watching a show, whether water or juice? If they enjoy reading and use any devices, have you connected them to the phone or the tablet to the app they need to source reading materials from? And most importantly, do they have a way to communicate with you if they need something urgently?
Set boundaries
Ensure that you let your senior parents understand that even if you are home often and life is a bit different, you still have work responsibilities to tend to. Unless your parents have recently retired, they may not know working from home fundamentals, video conferencing, laptops, etc. Maybe when they used to work, the idea of working away from the office or freelancing may be a new concept to them.
Remember to provide your parents with visual cues when working and remind them that you need to work with no distractions. For example, when you have your home office door shut, when on a video call and have your headphones on, or when sitting and working on your computer. You can minimize interruptions by discussing and determining what warrants one and what does not.
If your parents are a fall risk, you may want to learn how to prevent falls in elderly, like escorting them anytime they need to go up or down the stairs. If they are incontinent, let them know that they can call you for help whenever they need to use the bathroom. You can even install cameras around the home with motion sensors if your parent has Alzheimer’s or dementia so that you are always aware of where they are in the house while you are working. Remember, folks with dementia or any other cognitive decline may not understand your boundaries. So you will have to repeat everything as much as needed.
However, it’s also true that with boundaries, you let them know when they can call on you for help. For example, you may be more than happy to help them with the development of any health conditions, providing confidential, respectful assistance when needed, even in situations where they may be embarrassed, such as showing how to get rid of urine smell or helping them adapt to other symptoms they’re going through.
Remember to take care of yourself.
It’s okay to admit you are overwhelmed sometimes. You may be doing too much and forgetting to take care of yourself. Ensure you are sleeping, eating well, and also exercising. We know it sounds like when will you find the time to fit all this between your busy schedule. But you can enlist the help of a professional caregiver who can be coming a few days a week so that you can catch a break.
In-home services range from simple assistance, meal preparation, or light housekeeping. Hiring a professional caregiver ensures any medical needs your parents may require are also taken care of. Hiring a part-time caregiver will relieve some of your tasks tremendously if your work consumes a big chunk of your day. You will have some time to finish work, take care of the family, and have some alone time to yourself.
For more on this topic, check out the full Senior Care collection
